Patna: The devastating flash floods in Nepal have begun to affect business and tourism along Bihar’s border, with traders in several border markets reporting a sharp decline in customers, while tourist vehicle movement and cargo transportation have also been disrupted.
From Sitamarhi’s Bhitthamod to Raxaul and Jogbani, the impact varies across border points, but traders and transport operators say the crisis in Nepal is being felt on the Indian side as well.
At Bhitthamod, traders who depend heavily on customers from Nepal say business has fallen dramatically.
“Earlier, the shop used to be crowded with Nepali customers. Now, hardly 10% of them are coming. Around 90% of the business has come to a standstill,” said Vinod Kumar Thakur, a clothing shop owner operating near the India-Nepal border.
Thakur said the timing of the crisis has added to traders’ concerns as Nepal’s major festivals, Teej and Dashain, are celebrated during September and October.
“If customers do not come to our shops during the festival season, how will we earn? We are worried that we could suffer losses running into crores of rupees,” he said.
Tourist movement drops sharply
The decline in tourism has been particularly visible at the Jaleshwar customs point in Nepal, according to the ground assessment.
Traders and transport operators said more than 1,000 tourist vehicles would normally arrive at the customs point on a typical day. However, only around four to five vehicles are currently arriving throughout the day.
Most of these vehicles are travelling to nearby Janakpur Dham, while the number of tourists heading towards destinations farther away, including Kathmandu, has fallen sharply.
The decline in tourist movement has directly affected businesses operating around the border, including shops, hotels, restaurants, transport operators and other tourism-related establishments.
More than 100 trucks wait for customs clearance
The disruption is not limited to tourism and retail trade. More than 100 trucks carrying goods were reportedly waiting at the India-Nepal border for customs clearance.
The trucks are carrying food items, coal, marble and other goods and include vehicles from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and other states.
Transport operators said many of the trucks had been waiting for around two days to complete the customs process.
The situation has resulted in a contrasting picture at customs premises, where long queues of vehicles seen during normal days have been replaced by fewer vehicles and waiting trucks.
Small traders face livelihood concerns
The slowdown has also hit small retailers whose businesses depend on customers crossing the border.
Giradhar Pandey, who runs a grocery and general store, said his daily customer count has fallen sharply.
“Earlier, 400 to 500 customers used to visit my shop every day. Now, after waiting throughout the day, only four or five customers come,” he said.
Pandey said the decline in sales has made it difficult to meet shop expenses as well as household requirements.
“If the situation continues for a long time, the livelihood crisis for small traders could become more serious,” he said.
Nepali customers disappear from Bhitthamod market
Bhitthamod in Sitamarhi, which has traditionally attracted customers from Nepal looking for clothes, groceries, household goods and other essential items, has also witnessed a steep fall in footfall.
Clothing trader Rudal Kumar Thakur said that where around 100 Nepali customers would earlier visit the market for shopping, the number has now fallen to just one or two.
“The market used to remain crowded with customers from Nepal. Now traders are opening their shops and sitting idle,” he said.
Traders said the economies of border markets on both sides are closely connected, meaning any major disruption in Nepal quickly affects businesses in adjoining Indian areas.
Nepal-bound tourist bus bookings nearly stop
Tourist bus operators in Raxaul have also reported a sharp decline in bookings for Nepal.
Dharmendra Thakur, who is associated with tourist bus bookings, said reservations for Nepal-bound buses have almost stopped.
“Earlier, a large number of people travelled to Nepal for tourism and religious visits. In the current situation, people are avoiding travel,” he said.
Tour operators and bus operators now hope that tourism will recover once conditions in Nepal improve.
Raxaul market loses its usual bustle
Raxaul’s Bank Road, which normally sees significant footfall from Nepali customers, has also witnessed a decline in activity.
Traders said a large part of Raxaul’s retail business depends on customers from Nepal. With cross-border movement affected, shops have seen fewer customers and reduced sales.
However, traders are hoping for a recovery ahead of the upcoming festival season. They said an improvement in the situation in Nepal before Teej and Dashain could bring back customers and revive business.
Jogbani sees limited impact
The situation is not uniform across all Bihar-Nepal border points.
Traders in Araria’s Jogbani market said business has largely remained normal despite the floods in Nepal.
Mohammad Mujahid Ansari, a trader in Jogbani, said there was some disruption in movement during the first few days, but the market subsequently returned to normal.
“Business is currently continuing as usual and we are not facing any major problem,” he said.
Nepali residents thank India for assistance
Amid the crisis, Nepali residents have expressed gratitude for assistance from India.
Nawal Kumar, a Nepal resident, said India has repeatedly extended support to Nepal during major disasters.
“Indian people have come forward to help Nepal during this crisis as well. The support is appreciable,” he said, while appealing to the international community to extend assistance to Nepal.
Indian pilgrims return safely
Despite the difficult situation in Nepal, around 35-36 pilgrims from Jodhpur, Rajasthan, who had travelled to Kathmandu, have safely returned to India.
Jodhpur resident Radheshyam Soni said the group had travelled to Kathmandu on August 22 to attend a religious programme and a seven-day bhajan and kirtan event.
After completing the programme, the group travelled through Janakpur and reached Sitamarhi.
Soni said the group, including family members, did not face any major difficulty during their seven to eight days in Nepal and returned safely to India.
Border security remains unchanged
Despite the disruption caused by the disaster, security arrangements along the India-Nepal border remain in place.
Personnel of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and police were seen checking people and vehicles crossing the border. Officials said there has been no special relaxation in the checking process because of the disaster.
Surveillance and security checks continue as usual.
India-Nepal trade faces a test
The disruption comes at a time when India remains Nepal’s largest trading partner. Raxaul-Birgunj and Jogbani-Biratnagar are among the key border corridors connecting the two countries.
The crisis is therefore not only affecting large-scale movement of goods but also the thousands of small traders, retailers, transport operators, hotels and other businesses whose livelihoods depend on regular cross-border movement.
For Bihar’s border economy, the immediate concern is how quickly normal movement of people and goods resumes. With Nepal’s major festival season approaching, traders on both sides are hoping that conditions improve before the peak shopping and travel period.
Until then, the impact of the disaster is being felt not only in Nepal’s flooded areas but also across the border, where empty shops, fewer tourist vehicles and waiting trucks reflect the economic fallout of the crisis.
